James A. Inciardi (1939-2009)

Dr. James A. Inciardi, founder and co-director of the Center for Drug and Alcohol Studies and professor of sociology and criminal justice at the University of Delaware, died on November 23 after a long battle with cancer. A pioneer of drug abuse and criminal justice research, Dr. Inciardi's research influenced policy and program development in these fields.

Before receiving his doctorate in sociology in 1973, Dr. Inciardi worked as a jazz drummer and a New York City parole officer. As a researcher, he conducted seminal studies on the link between drug abuse and criminal activity and developed therapeutic interventions for criminal offenders—work that formed a treatment model now used internationally. His research on the connection between drug abuse and HIV infection and transmission, and later on interventions for people at high risk of the infection, led to programs in probation and community settings. Until his death, Dr. Inciardi continued working on studies of prescription drug abuse, approaches to case management for vulnerable women, and a new ethnography of drug abuse in Brazil. He published over 500 articles, chapters, books, and monographs and was a fellow of the American Society of Criminology.